HRM: Training Need Analysis Approaches, Significance & Discussion

This essay provides a critical discussion on the approaches to Training Need Analysis (TNA) within organizations and its significance in Human Resource Management (HRM). It highlights the importance of TNA in identifying employee training and development needs to improve job performance and achieve organizational goals. The essay explores various approaches to TNA, including surveys, group discussions, questionnaires, task identification, weakness analysis, and consultation with supervisors. It also includes a self-reflection on academic achievements and personal training needs, emphasizing the importance of aligning individual skills with organizational goals. The essay concludes by suggesting further personal training strategies such as sharing the vision and reviewing the mission of the academic institution.

Running head: HRM
HRM
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Critical Discussion on Approaches of Training Need Analysis within the Organization and its
Significance
According to Ford (2014), Training Need Analysis (TNA) refers to the process where a
company identifies the training and the development needs of employees so that they are able
perform the job in an effective manner. This involves absolute analysis of the training needs at
the various levels of organization. It is however important to note that technology is undergoing
change at a faster pace that also implies the rising need for training and development of the
employees. It also helps in grooming the employees for next level and also helps the managers in
identifying the key areas of development of the employees.
Sung and Choi (2014) put across that companies have various in house experts for
training the employees on the various aspects of business. Most companies works out a calendar
in advance that list the various sessions that the employees can choose as per the business
requirement for enhancing the needs of the personal development. There are even companies that
send employees for the various training programs outside organizations for getting trained in a
course that is relevant to the job profile. It is to be noted that TNA represents a part of appraisal
process where at the end of year an employee needs to complete the development and training
needs identified by manager.
Bresnahan and Johnson (2013) however put across that the training needs are necessary
whenever the employee lacks skill or knowledge in satisfactorily performing an assigned task. It
becomes necessary when there is a difference between what the employee does in the job and

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what he actually does. However there are different approaches to the training needs analysis as
put forward by the Human Resource (HR) department. These include:
Undertaking Survey involves surveying the potential trainees for the identification of
the specific topics regarding which they need to learn more. It implies that the trainees are
increasingly receptive to resulting program when they seem relevant. The expertise of the group
is either tapped through group discussion, questionnaire and group meeting.
Identification of the Group Recommendation involves group discussion and
questionnaire. Group Discussion resembles the face to face interview technique which is either
structured or unstructured and formal or informal. This can be focused on the analysis of the job
or the problem of the group. It also involves goal setting of the group or the number of themes or
task of the group. The process also involves various group facilitating techniques that involved
nominal process of the group, brainstorming, force field, mirroring of organization, consensus
ranking, sculpting and simulation. Trotzer (2013) identified some advantages of the approach.
This included on spot synthesis of the varied viewpoints, helps in building support for particular
service response and aids the participants in becoming better listeners and problem analyst. In
contrast to this, Hennink (2013) put across some of the disadvantages of the approach. This
involves immense time consuming not only for the consultant but also the agency and production
of data that seems difficult to quantify and synthesize. Questionnaire is usually in the form of
the polls or surveys of stratified or random sample of the respondents. This makes use of varied
question formats that include forced choice, open ended and priority ranking. Besides, it might
be self administered under the controlled or the uncontrolled conditions thereby requiring the
presence of the assistant or the interpreter. According to Brace (2018) some of the advantages of
the approach include reaching a larger number of people in a shorter period of time and it also

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defines a relatively inexpensive process. Denscombe (2014) however, identified some of the
disadvantages that include hardly making any provision for the free expression of the
unanticipated response, requirement of substantial amount of time for the development of the
effective instruments and having lower rates of return, grudging responses and inappropriate
respondents
Identification of the task involves evaluation of the job description for identification of
the tasks required by the job. Once the trainers develop an understanding of the task, specific
plans are put across for providing necessary training.
Identification of the weakness of HR involves identification of inappropriate
placement, selection, orientation or recruitment that leads to the deficiencies of the workers.
Error in such activities stems from the weakness of job design, HR planning and the HR
information system. Training and development is required for increasing the performance of the
workers that might modify the other activities for ensuring a better fit between the performance
and the people.
There are other means of information that involves reviewing various reports like the
production report, report related to quality control, absenteeism, safety reports, exit interviews
and the turnover statistics. The advantages of the process involve ready availability and
collection with minimum effort and interruption of the work flow. In contrast, the approach has
certain disadvantages since it generally reflects past situation instead of the current one. The
approach also requires an efficient data analyst.
Training needs can also be derived via consultation with the supervisors who
observes the employees on day to day basis and is the right person to recommend employees for

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the training and the development. Sometimes self nominations of employees are conducted for
understanding the training needs (Lancaster, Di Milia and Cameron 2013).
Thus, Robertson et al. (2015) put forward the significance of the training need analysis
by focusing on the fact that it leads to improved performance thereby helping in the achievement
of the organizational goals. TNA also helps in identifying the list of knowledge and skills of
employees in methodical manner thereby addressing the gaps in the required skills of work force.
Self Reflection:
The key areas of my academic achievements include the achievement of scholarships for
my excellent academic performance. I have received awards for the specific subjects or activities
that included fine art award and award for the most valuable player. Besides, I have also been
part of various student related publications. Even, I have also received an award for the perfect
attendance
The training need analysis represents the initials stage of the training process and
involves procedure of determining whether the training will be able to identify the problem
identified. I believe that training is described as acquisition of the skills, attitudes and the
concepts that results in achievements. However, the training need overviews each of the aspects
of the operational domain that helps in the identification of the initials skills, attitudes and
concepts of human elements of the system for appropriate training. The training needs
identified from the academic achievements include identification of the goals to be achieved and
the effectiveness in reaching goals, identification of the discrepancies or the gaps between the
skills that I posses and the skills required ensuring effective performance in achieving the current

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goal and the identification of the gaps or discrepancies between my skills and the skills necessary
achieving the goals in the future.
However for further personal training I would suggest sharing the vision and
reviewing the mission of the academic institution. The vision should remain tied to the mission
statement and it should describe why it is necessary for achieving the mission statement in
looking for the future. I would also suggest knowing the fact that the school could be a change
agent. It is also necessary to undertake analysis of data that would help individuals in celebrating
your strength, focus on the improvement and drawing up plans for improving the weakness.
Besides, individuals should also be taught the difference between application, recall and strategic
reasoning.

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References:
Brace, I., 2018. Questionnaire design: How to plan, structure and write survey material for
effective market research. Kogan Page Publishers.
Bresnahan, M.M. and Johnson, A.M., 2013. Assessing scholarly communication and research
data training needs. Reference Services Review, 41(3), pp.413-433.
Denscombe, M., 2014. The good research guide: for small-scale social research projects.
McGraw-Hill Education (UK).
Ford, J.K. ed., 2014. Improving training effectiveness in work organizations. Psychology Press.
Hennink, M.M., 2013. Focus group discussions. Oxford University Press.
Lancaster, S., Di Milia, L. and Cameron, R., 2013. Supervisor behaviours that facilitate training
transfer. Journal of Workplace Learning, 25(1), pp.6-22.
Robertson, I.T., Cooper, C.L., Sarkar, M. and Curran, T., 2015. Resilience training in the
workplace from 2003 to 2014: A systematic review. Journal of Occupational and
Organizational Psychology, 88(3), pp.533-562.
Sung, S.Y. and Choi, J.N., 2014. Do organizations spend wisely on employees? Effects of
training and development investments on learning and innovation in organizations. Journal of
organizational behavior, 35(3), pp.393-412.
Trotzer, J.P., 2013. Counselor and The Group: Integrating Theory, Training, and Practice.
Taylor & Francis.